GRAVENHURST — A loss and a win last week put the South Muskoka Shield in a tight race for the first place spot heading into the Greater Metro Jr. A Hockey League playoffs.
The Shield emerged at the top of the regular season standings with an 8-3 win against the Algoma Avalanche during an away game on Feb. 4. But the victory was short lived when on Feb. 5 the Shield lost 8-4 to Elliot Lake in a second away game.
After the long bus ride to Algoma, the Shield got off to a sluggish start.
“We started slow and we got better as the game went on. That was probably due to the six-hour bus ride,” said Shield head coach Dallyn Telford.
The Algoma arena is very small and the team plays a physical game, said Telford.
“Algoma is a team that is fighting for the last playoff spot and we are still fighting for first,” said Telford.
Telford said he expected the Shield to win and they did.
“We didn’t do anything spectacular, we just played a solid game.”
The game heated up near the end with four goals scored in the third period.
Shield forward Ricky Greenslade scored one goal in the second period and two in the third. Dan Soderberg-Andersson put two in the net in the third period. The first goal of the night went to Jon Adams. Dylan Sontag and Chad Meagher both scored in the second period.
The Shield defence was strong as it has been all season, said Telford. Goals against for the year are lower than any other team in the league, he added.
“I am pretty proud of that stat because we have worked on it hard all year,” said Telford.
The team has, for the most part delivered defensively, but unfortunately, there are off nights and Feb. 5 was one of them, said Telford.
In a first for the team, the Shield deflected four pucks into their own net.
“I have never seen anything like it in my days in hockey — four goals on your own net, in the same game, never,” said Telford.
The game did not go well.
“It was just one of those nights,” he said. “It seemed like no matter what we did the puck was not going to bounce our way.”
Momentum slowed as the game went on.
“It is almost like all the wind is taken out of your sail. We played hard and worked all night, but it seemed like whatever they (Elliot Lake) touched turned to gold,” said Telford.
Still, there were some shining moments. Shield captain Chad Meagher scored three goals and Shield rookie Chris Lane also scored a goal.
With an aim to head into the playoffs in first place, there was a lot on riding on the game against Elliot Lake, said Telford. While it is still possible to rise to first, it seems unlikely.
“Over the next two weeks, that game will likely cost us first place,” said Telford.
The team has to find a way to move past the little bump in the road and focus on the end goal, he said. “Our main goal is to win the championship game in the playoffs.”
The Shield heads into the playoffs at the end of February.
Up next for the Shield are a home game against Algoma on Feb. 12 and an away game against the Powassan Dragons. They will play Powassan again at home on Tuesday, Feb. 16.
The top three teams in the standings are separated by a point each as of Feb. 8.
Friday’s loss puts the Shield in third place with 64 points, and a record of 31-5-2.
Bradford tops the standings with 66 points and 32-5-2. Elliot Lake is in second with 65 points and a 31-4-3 record.